Love Your Country

I WENT looking for the war on MTV and couldn’t find it. True, just after 9/11, MTV did join with the USO to put on a special called “For the Troops.” And for some time afterward, the station played Kid Rock’s single from that special (a song that had nothing to do with 9/11 per se). But so far as I can tell, Kid Rock is gone, and MTV is now convinced that the war is over.

On Country Music Television, on the other hand, the war is still omnipresent. A fan wins a chance to interview Reba McEntire and asks how 9/11 changed her life; countdown shows intersperse hits with shots of country-music stars entertaining soldiers; and the phrase “Love Your Country” has become a popular network tag line. Then there are the videos—too many to list—that revolve around patriotism and post-9/11 themes. Alan Jackson’s “Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)” was a crossover hit that powered his album to the top of the national charts. Aaron Tippen’s “Where the Stars and Stripes and the Eagle Fly” also topped the country charts and showed considerable crossover appeal. Toby Keith, Brooks & Dunn, Hank Williams Jr., Charlie Daniels, George Jones, and Montgomery Gentry have had hits with similar themes.

About the Author

Stanley Kurtz

Stanley Kurtz is a senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center.

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I WENT looking for the war on MTV and couldn’t find it. True, just after 9/11, MTV did join with the USO to put on a special called “For the Troops.” And for some time afterward, the station played Kid Rock’s single from that special (a song that had nothing to do with 9/11 per se). But so far as I can tell, Kid Rock is gone, and MTV is now convinced that the war is over.

On Country Music Television, on the other hand, the war is still omnipresent. A fan wins a chance to interview Reba McEntire and asks how 9/11 changed her life; countdown shows intersperse hits with shots of country-music stars entertaining soldiers; and the phrase “Love Your Country” has become a popular network tag line. Then there are the videos—too many to list—that revolve around patriotism and post-9/11 themes. Alan Jackson’s “Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)” was a crossover hit that powered his album to the top of the national charts. Aaron Tippen’s “Where the Stars and Stripes and the Eagle Fly” also topped the country charts and showed considerable crossover appeal. Toby Keith, Brooks & Dunn, Hank Williams Jr., Charlie Daniels, George Jones, and Montgomery Gentry have had hits with similar themes.